The idea, it’s being alleged, was to fix his opponents, especially Dr Warren Kiiza Besigye. This view, especially considering that unlike the civil courts, the court martial is purportedly easy to push, deciding in favor of their Commander-in-Chief.

Returning to Justice Katutsi, he had on two different occasions, in 2005 and 2011 to be exact, dismissed two different sets of treason cases, and one case of rape that the State had instituted against Col Kiiza Besigye. The State had rolled out those charges immediately after Besigye had shortly thereafter, declared his bid to wrestle power from Museveni via elections.

The founder President of the opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) had just made a heroic return to the country following a four-year exile stint in South Africa, when the State slapped him with the said grave crime charges. A young woman, Joanita Kyakuwa, who had formerly worked as Besigye’s maid, was the complainant to the rape case.

While in the treason case, Besigye stood charged with using a mysterious rebel outfit staged by the State as People’s Redemption Army (PRA), to oust Museveni from power. Following his arraignment, Besigye was remanded to Luzira Maximum prison, potentially dealing a blow to his campaigns. But in a stunning turn of tables, Betty Olive Namisango Kamya, Besigye’s former blue-eyed special envoy at FDC, navigated her way into the Electoral Commission (EC) offices, picking the nomination forms on Besigye`s behalf.

Armed with the said documents, Museveni’s current Inspector General of Government (IGG), proceeded to prison, enabling Besigye to fill the said documents, hence securing his nomination as a candidate… During the hearing of the rape case, it came to light that Kyakuwa had curiously emerged from State House to purposely feature as a key witness to the case.

More curiously, before her court appearance, Kyakuwa had previously gone missing without trace from Besigye’s Kasangati home, only to, interestingly, end up at Museveni’s official home. Thereafter, Kyakuwa told court that she reported Besigye directly to Museveni. Of note, following her disappearance, her employer had launched into a frantic search to locate her, only to fail flatly.

Continuing with his evidence, Kyakuwa stated to court how Museveni, following a report she had made to him, personally instructed his then Police CID Chief, Elizabeth Kuteesa, to handle the case. Apart from handling her case, the female police officer controversially started a poultry business for Kyakuwa! She would curiously be kept at State House as a guest until she was finally unleashed by the State as a key witness to Besigye’s purported rape case.

In a dramatic turn of events, Besigye’s lead defense lawyer, Daudi Mpanga would meticulously expose Kyakuwa as a false witness. This is what the sharp legal mind did. First, he asked Kyakuwa to remove her head gear. Initially, she had hesitated to do so. But upon Katutsi’s insistence, she removed it from her head.

And, behold, It was finally established that whatever she had all along been stating to court was actually being communicated to her from outside the courtroom through her headgear. Mpanga’s stunning discovery was the last straw that literally broke the horse’s back. And Justice Katutsi dismissed all of the said cases, terming them as a “crude work of fabrication”.

Another set of treason charges were coined against Dr Besigye, following the 2021 election. This was after Besigye had declared himself the winner of that election. Despite the Besigye’s insistence that he be tried over those charges in order to table evidence and back up his purported victory, the State, possibly avoiding the embarrassment of being thrice floored by Besigye, abandoned the same.

Before that, in 2016, to be exact, the State had stunningly unleashed warlord Joseph Kony’s notorious commander, Thomas Kwoyelo with the view of linking Besigye to their globally blacklisted Lord’s Resistance Army terrorist group. But Justice Katutsi, upon sighting Kwoyelo standing in the dock, banged the table in protest and directed him to leave his court at once.

Remarkably, Justice Katutsi wondered how the State could use a man whose hands were dripping with blood of innocent Ugandans as a witness in a case that he said, had merely been made up with the view to block an innocent man from exercising his political rights. In conclusion, while Justice Katutsi has since retired from the judiciary, the State continues to this day and date, to grapple with how to secure a conviction against Besigye by either hook or crook.

Dr. Besigye, a longtime critic of President Yoweri Museveni’s administration, had sought Karua, a former Kenyan Minister of Justice, to lead his defense against charges of illegal possession of arms and ammunition. However, the Law Council, under Justice Mulyagonja, rejected Karua’s application. In her ruling, Mulyagonja dismissed Karua’s potential contributions as offering no “special skills” to the case, a decision that Karua swiftly rebuffed with a pointed critique.

Karua’s Rejoinder: A Question of Justice

Karua, known for her fiery independence and staunch advocacy for the rule of law, accused Mulyagonja of undermining Dr. Besigye’s fundamental right to a legal defense of his choice. “By denying my license, Justice Mulyagonja has obstructed access to justice,” Karua said in a statement. She suggested the move was part of a broader strategy to tilt the scales of justice against Dr. Besigye, who was controversially abducted from Kenya and brought to Uganda under unclear circumstances.

Karua’s rebuttal also poked fun at Mulyagonja’s legal history, alluding to her tenure as Uganda’s Inspector General of Government (IGG). “It appears old habits of bending justice for convenience die hard,” she quipped, highlighting what she called the “weaponization of legal technicalities” to stifle opposition voices.

The Besigye Cases: A Pattern of Contention

 Dr. Besigye’s legal troubles are not new. Over the years, the government has filed several high-profile cases against him, including treason and rape charges, many of which have been dismissed. This time, however, the charges seem to carry an undertone of political suppression, with speculation that the government may escalate the current arms charges to treason.

Sources close to the investigation allege the government possesses an audio recording of Besigye allegedly mobilizing for armed resistance against Gen. Museveni’s government. The accusations have drawn sharp criticism from opposition leaders and human rights activists, who argue that the charges are fabricated.

Besigye himself has dismissed the army court proceedings as illegal, citing a constitutional court ruling barring military courts from trying civilians. While the Attorney General appealed the ruling, Uganda’s Supreme Court has delayed resolving the matter for over two years. “Justice delayed is justice denied,” Besigye remarked during a court appearance, calling the delays a calculated move to keep him entangled in legal battles.

Regional Fallout and Activist Uproar

The controversy surrounding Besigye’s trial has spilled beyond Uganda’s borders. Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, also known as Bobi Wine, joined the chorus of dissent, accusing the government of framing Besigye and demanding his unconditional release. Meanwhile, activists have taken the matter to the East African Court of Justice, alleging that both Uganda and Kenya violated international law in Besigye’s alleged cross-border abduction.

Government’s Defense: Security at Stake?

 Ugandan authorities remain steadfast, with Brigadier Felix Kulayigye, spokesperson for the Uganda People’s Defence Forces, asserting that the state has solid evidence linking Besigye to security threats. “This is not about politics but national security,” Kulayigye said in a televised address.

A Battle Far From Over

 The legal and political drama continues to unfold, with Karua’s sharp criticism adding fuel to an already raging fire. Observers suggest the case could have far-reaching implications for Uganda’s judiciary and its relationship with international human rights standards.

For now, all eyes remain on the courtroom, where the next chapter of this contentious saga will play out. Will Dr. Besigye’s defense overcome what many see as insurmountable odds, or will the government’s legal machinery prevail? Only time will tell.

Hear us out folks, the 2026 general election is going to amount to nothing else, but to an exercise to ratify what is, even now, obvious! To put it much simpler, Muhoozi’s participation in those elections, can be equated to his father taking a leisure walk away from State House. It simply doesn’t mean that the old man wouldn’t return to the comfort of State House! Gory No!

Get this right, we are not proposing that Muhoozi should be sworn in right away.  It is a legal requirement that presidents must be determined by elections. Thank you very much, we fully know this one. But we mean, in our case, a presidential election is, but a sheer formality. It endorses what we already know! Unfortunately, that is the realism. Nothing less, nothing more. Period! 

Take this, Yoweri Museveni Kaguta Tibuhaburwa has been enlightening us about how mere papers(votes) do not remove the quarter pins. But who can begrudge the man and his opinion? He has been there. He has seen it all. So, Tibuhaburwa knows what he is talking about. Yet we, again, waste precious time, by leaving every useful thing on our tables, to go and line up, in the name of supposedly voting a president of our choice.  Such a folly! The story…

Museveni promotes Besigye

Lest we digress, we now revert to the subject of this write-up. Tibuhaburwa and his people made Bobi Wine and, before then, Dr Kiiza aka Kizza Besigye Kifeefe. And now, Bobi Wine and Besigye have knowingly or unknowingly, conspired to return the favor to Mzee Tibus via his crowned political successor in Muhoozi!

Museveni started to promote Besigye the day the man of Kasangati, issued a missive lampooning him and his ruling party, of derailing from the virtues that took them to the bush. Oh, Kifeefe’s missive shook Kaguta like an earthquake! Tibuhaburwa right away directed that Kifeefe be marched off to the Court Martial. For, Museveni asserted, the native of Nakabango had used the wrong forum to address matters of the ruling party and the military. Well, Kifeefe prevailed after Tibuhaburwa agreed to his (Kifeefe’s) request to part ways with the army

This was the mistake number one. Such was the gravity of the blunder that Tibuhaburwa has since learned never, ever again to repeat. If you think we are bluffing, check out Gen David Sejusa. The former larger-than-life decorated general-turned-light-paper weight, is sitting there in Naguru with a big story to tell about how Tibuhaburwa is no longer taking lightly, matters of soldiers wishing to resign.

Upon receiving the discharge letter, Besigye proclaimed his wish to take on his former CiC in the race for State House. Why not? In any case, Kifeefe was no longer a subject of the court martial. Tibuhaburwa from this time forth, made all sorts of blunders in order to try to stop Kifeefe. Those gaffes were exploited by Kifeefe and his sympathizers, to depict Tibuhaburwa not only as a power-hungry man, but also as a nervous guy, uncomfortable with the universal legalities of being tested through an election.

The more, Tibuhaburwa messed up by, for instance, subjecting Kifeefe to fake rape and treason charges, imprisoning him, following him here and there and, from time to time, using fake laws or creating some, in order to dishonestly knock him out of the presidential race, the more each and every one in Uganda and around the globe, cared to fully take interest in the now trending political enigma in Kifeefe. 

Yet before all these, a few guys had cared to know about a certain biological species known as Kifeefe. And here now was Tibuhaburwa innocently hyping him, in the name of stopping him from enjoying his constitutionally as well universally regarded rights! Lest Kifeefe ends up by detaining us here, suffice it to say that ever since that time, Tibuhaburwa has never been the same. The world now highly suspects him to be a power-hungry guy, in the league of the `idiots` he overthrew yesteryears in order to restore human rights and democracy.

Museveni as Bobi’s marketer

The least said about the Kamwokya young man, Bobi Wine, the better. Kifeefe has done everything possibly possible to block the muzzukulu from enjoying his rights ever since that day he chose to run for State House. From the presidential guards brutalizing him from inside the rather august house, arraigning the muzzukulu before court complete with gory torture marks, to attacking him inside the hotel room in Gulu, Bobi has suffered it all. But the more Tibuhaburwa has subjected Bobi to nasty treatment, the more he has earned him loads of support, sympathy as well as admirers here and abroad.

Besigye, Bobi turns favor 

By repeatedly gossiping about Muhoozi’s presidency, the two politicians and their ilk have at the same time been helping to sell it widely. This, regardless whether they have been doing it wittingly, or not. Other than nattering about Muhoozi, the opposition would have done themselves a lot of favor by strategizing how to tackle Muhoozi during the actual presidential race.

Furthermore, such talk, one can argue, prompted Muhoozi and his admirers to ask why he was the only one among the rest, being treated as an illegal presidential aspirant, yet he has all the qualities required to run for the office and to occupy it! Angered by the noise, Muhoozi and his admirers, most probably, could have chosen to finally throw the hat in the ring. For the ring to separate the men from the boys. If not, to separate the wheat from the chuff. 

Away from that, we have been made to understand how Museveni had not initially warmed up to the idea of being succeeded by Muhoozi.  On the contrary, Museveni is thought to have cast his favor on Amama Mbabazi.  But to this, we shall revert as we go on.

Well, the more Kifeefe threatened to prosecute Museveni over what he calls his excesses during the time he has been in State House, the more, the old man would as well think seriously about the Muhoozi presidential project. This is, but a natural instinct. For just anyone faced with the option of choosing between being subjected to a bad life after losing power and that of anointing his own child to succeed him, would most likely choose the latter option. 

For, a child would have less appetite to harm their own parent. In any case, if that parent has ceded power to the child.  Yet, we don’t think, such can happen in case, what is more, of a politician threatening to harm a retired leader! And who, moreover, has ceded power to them.

Away from that, we have been informed as well that Muhoozi had also ignored politics. He was instead looking at building a career in the military. But for politicians threatening to harm his family members, he changed that position. This is how he started to think seriously about taking after his dad. Put simpler, just as the dad, Muhoozi, in changing his eyes from being a military man to State House, he was thinking of survival and comfort after his father had left office.

We have been made to know how Tibuhaburwa had warmed up to the idea of Amama Mbabazi succeeding him. But he would gradually start drifting away from Amama. This stance, after learning that his aloofness and arrogance had alienated the Kanungu man from the NRM core support and even outside the party. Amama wasn’t being loathed within the NRM alone. To majority of the bush war generals and even senior military officers, the idea of saluting a certain Amama as CiC, was `sickening`.

Theirs’ was the view that a man who didn’t fight in Luweero, couldn’t be saluted by those who braved the bullets. The fact that Tibuhaburwa was favoring Amama over them, was unsettling the combatants too. For the record, Amama was during the war, largely based outside the country. But that was the case because, Amama was doing the job of marketing the rebel group outside and beyond the country. 

Even more disgusting to the combatants, was the fact that Museveni had given Amama the leverage to chair the highest organ of the military. This is referred to as the Military Council. To add injury to insult, Amama was using those privileges to take decisions that were of grave consequences to the combatants plus senior military officers. Oh, how this made combatants to hate Amama! 

The war combatants had on several occasions, made it abundantly clear to the top leadership that it was wrong for a civilian, to meddle in matters of the bush war generals and military officers. Nonetheless, the CiC hadn’t given a damn to what the combatants were talking about. Amama was his buddy. And so, the CiC wasn’t expected to annoy him.

But Kaguta would change his favoritism for Amama later on. This, after receiving such intelligence one after the other. While he was still at it, Museveni received yet more intelligence of Amama scheming to bring him down. Amama was thought to be doing this by creating networks within the party organs and government offices. Oh, Tibuhaburwa was devastated! He quickly let go of Amama before subjecting him to a harsh campaign of his lifetime.

Yet we have been here to discuss the role Besigye, Bobi and their ilk have played in marketing Muhoozi. We have done our best to do this, with the material we have had. We now invite you to enrich the debate. For any contributions, kindly WhatsApp +256772621522